This invention relates to communication networks, and more particularly relates to switching data of varying bandwidths in such networks.
Ever since the first intelligent transport network devices were installed into a Service Provider network, there has been a need for a robust, remote/automatically controlled network. The need was for a network that permitted remote maintenance and provisioning to improve time to repair and service installation intervals.
The initial intelligent devices were Electronic Digital Cross connects (EDSX) and certain versions of DS1 Digital terminating Banks (D-Banks). These devices by themselves offered some level of remote control but the network was still saturated with devices that required on site manual effort for maintenance and provisioning which prevented any real progress towards the vision.
SONET/SDH was the first real opportunity to make major steps towards meeting the need. This new technology included Broadband Digital Cross connect Systems (BDCS), Wideband Digital Cross connect Systems (WDCS) and intelligent fiber optic terminal equipment with varying degrees of cross connect capabilities. The intelligence capabilities of these devices along with the ability to make cross connections remotely were helpful to meet the need. However, more than just network infrastructure was required to meet the need. There has to be operational support systems in place that provide the necessary administrative and control capabilities necessary for this automatically controlled network.
At the same time that national and international standards were being developed for SONET/SDH, efforts to define a set of standards for such an operational support infrastructure were also undertaken. These efforts led to the development of the Telecommunications Management Network (TMN). This TMN concept is based on a top down approach to network management. The TMN infrastructure includes a layered approach to solving the problem of operational support in an automatically controlled, multi-vendor network. The proposed layers within the TMN includes the following:
Element Layer—This is the actual network element, for example BDCS, WDCS SONET terminal.
Element Management (EM) Layer—This layer of management provides control and coordination of a subset of network elements along with providing the mediation function between the elements and the Network Management layer.
Network Management (NM) Layer—Controls and coordinates the network view of all elements within a domain. This layer provision, connects, disconnects, and modifies network capabilities for service to the customer among other functions.
Service Management Layer (SM)—This layer provides the point of contact for the customers, management of the services provided, billing, service integration and other important functions
Business Management Layer (BM)—This layer provides for the total enterprise responsibility along with strategic planning functions.
This work to develop all that is required for the TMN has been very complex and has moved forward slowly. One of the areas of most contention has been and still is the connection between the Element Management layer and the Network Management layer. This should probably be expected since this is the boundary point of responsibilities between the Transport Network Element and Element Manager vendor's proprietary domain and the Operational System Support Vendor's domain. The problems encountered at this interface have contributed to the inability of the Service Providers to meet the need. Some Operations Support System vendors have attempted to alleviate this problem by incorporating the Element Management layer into the Network Management Layer. This is at best difficult. First, obtaining the necessary agreements between the OSS vendor and the element vendor to facilitate the necessary development work is difficult to obtain. Designing the function for a set of elements is a very lengthy process and each vendor's equipment may require a customized solution since the interface between the element and the EMS is proprietary. In addition, this approach does not promote the timely introduction of new features and functions into network elements because of the lag time that exist between the development in the elements and the developments needed to support the features and functions in the EMS.
Some of the Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs) rely on a set of tools, some of which were developed prior to any intelligent network devices. These tools have been modified to accommodate some of the capabilities of the intelligent devices but it is a slow process that results in only a limited set of functions. Some Network Providers have designed their own in house systems. These may provide a potential solution for any given point in time but given all the different Element Vendors that exist and the speed at which technology is changing, it is a monumental task keeping the systems current. Some Network Providers have purchased the TMN based systems that incorporate both the EMS and NMS layers as described above and these Providers face the problems included in the discussions above.
This invention addresses the foregoing problems and provides a solution.